


Warrior Child

by Morgyn Leri (morgynleri)



Series: Teeg's Choice [2]
Category: Farscape
Genre: Alternate Universe, GFY, Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-09-01
Updated: 2013-09-01
Packaged: 2017-12-25 07:27:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,517
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/950335
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/morgynleri/pseuds/Morgyn%20Leri
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After leaving the Peacekeepers, there's more to learn than Teeg expected, and yet the most important things are still the same. Now, all they have to do is live long enough to take in those new lessons.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

I was certain that the half-breed had damaged my captain while he had him in his custody. His behavior did not appear to be driven by the same madness that had overtaken him while he chased Crichton, but the erraticness of it remained. I had concerns about him, and more about the gunship, Talyn. A newborn has not ever been capable of responding to orders, not to my knowledge. Not even a newborn Leviathan, though they are more capable than the newborns of other species.

"Talyn!"

I kept my attention on the consoles, trying to determine the cause of the irrational behavior of the ship while my captain berated him. It would, for the most part, be more likely to be discernible than the root of Crais' behavior.

"Stop this senseless behavior!" He paced, looking up at the ceiling a moment as he continued, his voice firm and steady. "Your mother has gone, do you understand?"

He gave Talyn a moment to respond, continuing with a bit more frustration in his voice when Talyn burbled some response I could not translate. I didn't know how they communicated, only that my captain gave every impression of understanding the gunship's vocalizations.

"Moya has abandoned you."

That had been a poor choice of words; the gunship began to power up his engines after Crais had spoken. I reached out to rest a hand against the nearest support rib, trying to soothe Talyn, hoping he wouldn't break cover.

"Talyn, this isn't going to help anyone."

"What are you doing?" Crais was staring up at the bulkhead above us once more, ignoring my attempt to mitigate his ill-advised choice of words. "Power down your engines at once!"

"Sir, he's still just a child, younger than any cadet. Not all cadets learn to respond well to orders at the same time." I held his annoyed gaze for a long moment, and he took a deep breath, visibly attempting to calm down, to project an air of reason.

"Talyn, leaving the protection of the field right now is suicidal. I know you detest all this hiding. You're a gunship, a warrior. You want to move, to fight."

I doubted Talyn was the only one, but the rest of us had better control over our impulses. Or, at the least, our reactions to them. And Crais is no warrior, for all that he is a capable fighter; he is a scientist and strategist at heart. The two former Prowler pilots that complete our tiny crew, and Officer Sun, they're more likely to understand Talyn's instincts to fight. They, after all, are the soldiers among us.

"But you're not yet strong enough to take on a command carrier." Crais reached out to rest a hand against the nearest support rib, as I had a few microts earlier, imitating the soothing gestures that I attempted, without any better success.

I looked over at movement at the doors, spotting Officer Sun there. She'd returned, and I could hear the change in Talyn's burbling chirps at her presence.

"He's going berserk," Crais took his hand from the rib, stalking towards Officer Sun. "Talk to him."

She looked over at me, raising an eyebrow in askance even as she stepped to the lowered bulkhead. "Talyn. What's the matter?"

"He will not explain to us what is the matter. His behavior is irrational at the moment." I ignored her glare as I spoke. "It would be beneficial if he were to show us, rather than wait for you to return in order to do so."

"Talyn, would you do as Lieutenant Teeg has asked?" Officer Sun rubbed a hand along the bulkhead she spoke, like soothing a fretful child. "There's no need to be afraid, I'm here. So are Crais and Teeg. Please, let us see what's upsetting you."

The communications console switched on, and we could all hear the noise that was bombarding him. I felt a chill run down my spine, recognizing the tactic for what it was.

"Broadband transmissions." Officer Sun approached the console, Crais beside her. "Random noises mixed with distortion spikes."

"Scorpius, sir." I drew Crais' attention. "A tactic he spoke of using before I left the command carrier. I had told the crew not to implement it when he suggested it."

"I see."

Officer Sun pressed her lips together before speaking to the gunship again. "Talyn, these signals mean nothing." She reached up to touch the bulkhead again, a gesture which I wondered if perhaps had a greater impact than the touch of hand to the support ribs. "They're intended to alarm you, and make you run."

"Talyn, do not play into the hands of your enemy." Crais' voice overlapped Officer Sun's, the firm tone very like the instructors for the older cadets, those who had passed the tests for officer training. "Remain right where you are. You're.. brave enough to do that." His tone gentled, and I raised a mental eyebrow. "Aren't you?"

I relaxed slightly when the engines powered down, keeping my attention on the scanners for any unusual activity. Even if Scorpius is merely using the tactic he suggested earlier, it would not do well for us to underestimate him. A marauder or a prowler would show up in enough time for us to avoid them.

"Talyn, excuse us a moment." Crais ushered Officer Sun to the alcove at the front of command, their voices low, but still audible as they spoke.

"D'Argo has regained consciousness. He and Crichton are eager to leave." Officer Sun leaned against the ledge under the observation port, Crais resting a hand against the rib to one side, keeping her in the alcove. She looked over her shoulder, glancing first at him, then at me. "And don't either of you suggest we abandon them, because that wasn't part of our agreement."

"We.. can't leave, just yet. Talyn is still too immature. No weapons, no starburst, and he continues to ignore my commands."

It was as if he had already forgotten what I had said earlier. Cadets all differ slightly, though if Talyn cannot learn to obey orders, I doubt that what happens to cadets of such mind would happen to him. My captain put too much of his time into the gunship project for him to terminate Talyn for one small flaw.

"You can't command a Leviathan, Crais." Officer Sun had a smug smile on her face, reflected in the view port, and I frowned. "You can only persuade."

"Talyn is part Leviathan, part Peacekeeper." Crais leaned away from her, meeting my reflected frown with a raised eyebrow. "He was designed to take orders."

"Bred like you or I, Officer Sun, to be a soldier, a warrior." I added my own observation in the silence. "Perhaps only a cadet now, but so were we all once."

She turned, and Crais stepped back slightly, leaving a line of sight between her and I.

"Let me talk to him, Crais. Alone."

"No. I am unwilling to relinquish command of Talyn."

"You share it well enough." She nodded towards me, and I narrowed my eyes.

"I obey my captain, Officer Sun. I do not share the command with him. Nor would I."

I would not, I think, do badly with a ship of the size Talyn was, or Crais expected him to become, nor with the crew compliment that would entail, but I did not feel ready for another taste of command yet. Not with Scorpius waiting for us to make a mistake, and more yet to learn from my captain.

She left microts later, the prowler arcing gracefully away towards the asteroid where she'd deposited the Luxan and Crichton earlier.


	2. Chapter 2

I was monitoring the communications, listening for a continuation of Scorpius's scare tactics, when Jors brought Crichton in by the scruff of the neck, a pulse pistol in his other hand. His own was still at his side, and there was a trickle of blood at the corner of Crichton's lip that made me think Jors had made certain the human had not had a chance to use the pistol before he confiscated it.

"Sir." Jors addressed Captain Crais, giving Crichton a small shove to propel him into the room. "He arrived in Officer Sun's prowler. Alone, sir."

Crichton let out a snort of laughter, a small smile on his face. "I know, I know. I'm sorry. I should have called, but I was in the neighborhood, thought I'd drop in and say hi, how you doing?"

There are times when I'm not entirely certain the translator microbes actually work on all languages. Certainly Crichton's is sprinkled with odd turns of phrase that do well to confuse his adversaries. I carefully closed off the communications, turning to face him fully as Captain Crais asked where Officer Sun was.

"Have you harmed her?" Crais's expression darkened, a frown on his face that I could see echoed on Jors's. I hoped my own was more controlled, but there was already a sense that Officer Sun was part of the crew, one of us, not one of those we would gladly leave to travel on Moya.

"You're asking me if I harmed Aeryn?" Crichton gave another small laugh, looking at Crais with an incredulous expression. "That's a winner. Tell me, do Sebacians have a word for chutzpah?"

He started to move towards one of the control panels, and I stepped away from my post to intercept him. That he was aboard and in the command center was enough, he didn't need to poke at everything. His gaze met mine a moment, and he smiled at me, shrugging as he turned to look at Crais again.

"What do you want, Crichton?" Crais circled Crichton, his frown not fading despite the vague assurance from Crichton that Officer Sun had not been harmed.

"Oh, a couple of things. Your head on a platter for starters." He looked at me again, and then at Jors. "A chance to pay your bully-boy back for the split lip."

"I am unarmed." Crais held his hands out from his body in a display of that lack of weaponry. "I would not, myself, stop you from attempting to kill me. However, Talyn regards me as a friend."

"Interesting." Crichton tilted his head, regarding Crais with what appeared to be curiosity. "I heard you had a long way to go in that department."

"Perhaps I would be more accurate in saying that Talyn has come to regard all of us as allies. Nevertheless, I think he would react badly to my death and react by... killing you." Crais's voice and expression were nearly smug, that of a man who has out-maneuvered his opponent, even if said opponent hasn't realized it yet.

"Oh." Crichton looked thoughtful a moment. "Well, but. If you're dead, he's out of your clutches. Fair price to pay, I'd say."

"I don't think the price is as fair as you'd like to imagine, Crichton." I flicked a glance at Crais for permission to expand on my statement before meeting Crichton's curious gaze. "You are unarmed, and neither Officer Jors nor I would permit you to carry through on your desire to kill Captain Crais. Even if you were able to do so, that does not negate the chain of command. I would, if Captain Crais were incapacitated, take command."

Crichton grimaced, his distaste for that outcome clear in his expression. "Yeah, not quite what I want." He tilted his head, looking at Crais. "Fine. What do you want, Crais?"

"Simply to escape." Crais flicked his gaze towards me, and Jors. "To give Lieutenant Teeg and those officers loyal to me a chance to do the same. Travel deeper into the Uncharted Territories, re-examine my path further."

"You want to have a mid-life crisis?" Crichton stared at Crais, and I shifted my weight, straightening slightly. "Fine. Then just... Ditch the firm, head off to Maui..." He trailed off, glancing at me before continuing, "Shack up with the secretary, but you don't get to keep the Porsche! You don't get the keys to Moya's baby."

Crais looked down a moment, his expression serene in a way that made me worry. "Talyn. Intruder."

Jors moved rapidly forward as the hatch shut, and I brought the hands I had clasped behind me out from behind my back to reach for my pulse pistol. Crichton was moving before Talyn could get a clear shot, grabbing Crais by the hair, dragging him into one of the alcoves. Where none of us had a clear shot at Crichton.

"Tell Talyn and your bully boy to put away the toys, Crais." Crichton was snarling, and I could see one of his arms slide around Crais's neck. "You too, Teeg."

"Not while my captain's life is threatened, Crichton." I took a step sideways, trying to get a clear shot, and Crichton's arm tensed a moment. I glanced at Jors, and he shook his head. Too much in the way to get a clear shot at the human from his vantage point. "You won't leave this room alive if you kill him."

"Lieutenant." Crais's voice was strained from the grip around his neck, and he met my gaze for a moment, and I wondered just what he was trying to communicate without giving away what it was to Crichton. "I will be in no danger from Crichton."

"Sir?" I would allow as Selem wasn't trapped in here, and might be capable of effecting some assistance, but his aim was... regrettable, unless he was in his prowler.

"Talyn. Open the door." Crais looked over at Jors, his voice quiet despite the command in his tone. "Officer Jors."

"I think this is a bad idea." Jors was already returning his pulse pistol to its holster even as he spoke, his jaw clenched as he watched Crichton work his way to the door, still holding onto Crais, using him more as a hostage than a shield, but effective nevertheless.

As soon as he was into the corridor, I took the two short steps to the communications panel, opening a channel to Selem's prowler, hoping he was doing the maintenance still. "Officer Selem."

There was no answer, and I frowned, wondering where he'd gotten to if he weren't in his prowler. "Officer Jors, was Officer Selem in the docking bay when Crichton arrived?" I looked over at him, and he snapped to attention. Some of my frustration must have shown in my expression or in the tone of my voice for him to react quite that rapidly.

"Yes, ma'am. He was performing maintenance on his prowler." Information that wasn't particularly helpful at the moment, as it was what I had surmised in the first place. "It's possible he chose to so the same for Officer Sun's prowler while Crichton was our prisoner."

That someone who knew a prowler as well as Selem - as a technician as well as a pilot - could sabotage it without leaving signs the human would notice went unsaid. Perhaps I had not given Selem enough credit earlier, though his aim was only barely passable with a pulse pistol.

**Author's Note:**

> Originally posted on TerraFirma on 3 October 2007.


End file.
